Sex, Power, Riches, and Materialism | Billy Graham Classic Sermon

from our archives the Billy Graham

classics now tonight I want you to turn

with me to the 12th chapter of Matthew

the 12th chapter of Matthew and

beginning at verse 38 somebody asked me

what version I’m using I’m using the

same one Paul used the King James

version you know we have so many

versions today that you can stand up and

quote scripture and if you misquote it

they think you’re using another

version and it’s very interesting I have

I guess well I guess my wife and I must

have 25 different

versions well I’m going to the King

James version as I normally do in my

preaching I like a number of the

versions and they throw a lot of light

on it and I heard the story that someone

told about uh the the Apostle Paul had

re rece oh pardon me Timothy had

received a letter from the Apostle Paul

and behind him were two donkeys loaded

down with baggage and they said what is

all that they said well these are the

commentaries to tell you what Paul is

saying in that

letter then certain of the scribes and

of the FES answered saying Master we

want to see you do a sign we want a sign

but he answered and said unto them an

evil and adulterous generation seeketh

after a sign and there shall be no sign

given it but the sign of the prophet

Jonah isn’t it strange that Jesus would

use

Jonah he didn’t tell us not to believe

the story of Jonah he accepted the fact

that Jonah had been swallowed by a whale

or a ship or a big fish for as Jonah was

three days and three nights in the

whale’s belly so shall the son of man be

three days and three nights in the heart

of the earth he was using that as an

illustration of his own death and

Resurrection the men of Nineveh shall

rise in judgment with this generation

and shall condemn it because they

repented at the preaching of Jonah and

behold are greater than Jonah is here

remember when Jonah preached to Nineveh

and Nineveh was a great city of several

hundred thousand people and the greatest

Revival of all time took place when that

entire city turned to God in Repentance

they repented of their sins and everyone

in the whole city turned to God and God

spared that City the judgment and I’ve

been praying for America oh God spare

America because we see the possibilities

of our world being destroyed not only in

atomic war but also by AIDS and other

things that are gripping our world at

the moment the queen Queen of the South

shall rise up in the Judgment with this

generation and shall condemn it for she

came from the utmost parts of the earth

to hear the wisdom of Solomon but Behold

a greater than Solomon is here how could

a greater than Solomon ever come I want

to talk about that tonight I want to use

Solomon’s Life as a illustration of the

lives of Americans today and American

young people because you see Solomon was

a man of great

knowledge and we look on every hand

today and we see young people seeking

knowledge security love it seems that

they are on a great Quest young people

seek to Define themselves in terms of

clothes they wear and we hear that the

miniskirt is on the way back and the

crowd they run with and the things they

buy and the places they go in the rock

concerts they attend but many of our

young people today are lonely

and I was talking to the dean of one of

our great eastern universities and I

said what is the greatest problem on

this campus he said lack of purpose and

meaning that was Dr Buck at Harvard

University now the results of Jo of

Solomon’s search were expressed time

after time he said vanity of vanities

life is nothing but a

vanity and the word vanity means a

bubble that burst he sought pleasure by

every conceivable means but it was

nothing but a bursting

bubble Solomon had it all and at the end

he said it’s not worth

it first Solomon attained great

knowledge he knew more than any man that

ever lived

except Jesus Christ he said I’ve gotten

more wisdom than all they that have been

before me and all of those that are

going to follow me in Ecclesiastes 1 16

in First Kings 4:30 it says Solomon’s

wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the

East and all the wisdom of Egypt he said

I gave my heart to know wisdom and I

perceive that this also is vexation of

spirit for in much wisdom and

knowledge there is much

grief he said you can know it all have

all the knowledge and have all the phds

and all the rest but it doesn’t satisfy

something

deep inside our hearts and our souls

vanity of vanities all is Vanity and the

struggle intensifies around the globe

right now for the hearts and minds of

Youth but Christ said we’re to love God

with our heart soul strength and

mind and you cannot come to God Alone

through your mind our natural Minds have

been affected by sins the Bible says in

2 Corinthians 3:14 their minds were

blinded

in 2 Corinthians 4:4 the God of this

world hath blinded the minds of them

that believe not the God of this world

is the devil the Bible teaches there is

a devil there are demons and they have

the power to Blind your mind toward

spiritual

things in the futility of their thinking

they are darkened in their understanding

says Paul in Ephesians the 4th chapter

now that’s the new international version

by the way that particular scripture

just

quoted now the Bible teaches in Titus 1

that our minds are defiled in Daniel 5

it says they’re filled with pride in 1

Timothy 6:5 it says they’re corrupt in

Ephesians 4 it says they’re filled with

vanity in Proverbs 21 it says they’re

Wicked with all of our stockpiles of

knowledge do you know what we’ve learned

we’ve learned something that Adam and

Eve did not know in the Garden of

Eden we’ve learned

the knowledge of

evil Adam and Eve gained the knowledge

of evil when they sinned against God God

never meant that we were to know what

evil was he created us perfect human

beings we were to live thousands of

years on this planet we were to build a

Wonderful World with God’s help but we

rebelled against God and we gain the

knowledge of evil and now we’ve reached

the point in

Civilization where with all of our

knowledge we have now invented the

atomic bomb and the hydrogen bomb and

chemical weapons and computers and all

the rest that make it so that man can be

wiped out in a matter of

ours what can we do receive Christ let

him dominate your mind let this mind be

in you which was also in Christ Jesus

the scripture says you can be

transformed in your thinking be ye

transformed by the renewing of your mind

give your mind to

Christ yes there’s going to be peace

because Christ is the Prince of

Peace he’s going to bring peace but only

through God are we going to find peace

you can have peace in your heart right

now you can have peace of mind right now

by surrendering your life and your heart

to Jesus

Christ the Bible says God made the

wisdom of this world look foolish the

world failed to find him by its wisdom

and he chose to save those who have

faith in the Folly of the

Gospel notice he calls the gospel Folly

the gospel is folly to this world that

has its Mind Blinded and affected by the

devil you see sin is a disease it’s also

a disease of the

mind it’s worse than Alzheimer’s disease

or any other disease that you can think

of

it’s destructive and we all have it the

Bible says all have sinned what can we

do about it come to the

Cross let Christ forgive your sins

change your life turn you in a New

Direction and give you a new

mind because Christ can become the Lord

of your mind as well as your body and as

well as your

soul and then Solomon was not only the

smartest man and the most brilliant man

that ever lived and the best educated

but he gave himself to Great Pleasures

in Ecclesiastes 21 he said I said in my

heart go to now I will prove thee with

laughter therefore I’m going to enjoy

pleasure he had every sensual pleasure

that you can imagine the Bible describes

in details all that he had he had the

finest swimming pool you’ve ever read

about it was flanked by 12 lions of

gleaming bronze he drank the finest

Wines in Golden

goblets he had 700

wives and 300 concubines talk about sex

he had

it more than any of you will ever

have and every pleasure that you could

think of was at his beckon call he did

what many of you would like to do but

you can’t afford

it some people are good because they

can’t afford to be

bad but God doesn’t count that some sin

is expensive with every imaginable

device of pleasure and lusted his

fingertips Solomon sat out under the

stars one night and contemplated The

Emptiness of it all he said vanity of

vanities it’s all vanity it’s a bubble

that

burst how many of you are crying tonight

on the

inside

on the

outside you have a

mask

inside the peace and the joy and the

happiness that you’ve always searched

for is missing something’s wrong in your

marriage something’s wrong in your

courtship something’s wrong in your

school something’s wrong in your life

something’s wrong between you and your

parents something’s wrong between you

and your

friends something’s just missing in your

life do you know Christ do you have the

joy and the peace that he can

bring because in him are the pleasures

that you can have and then Solomon was

the richest man in the history of the

world his income was staggering it’s all

listed in the Bible the weight of gold

that came to Solomon in one year with 63

score and six talents of gold that’s

billions of dollars did you know he had

a stable of 40,000

horses but one night he sat on the top

of his house in Lebanon and with

indigestion his hand clutched at his

empty heart and he said vanity of vanity

all is vanity it’s all a bubble at burst

it’s nothing all this pleasure all these

riches and everything and nothing the

Bible says in Psalm 37 a little that a

righteous man hath is better than the

riches of many Wicked I’d rather be as

poor as job’s

turkey and know Christ than to be the

richest man in the whole world without

Christ in Proverbs 23 he wrote wil thou

set thine eyes upon that which is not

for riches certainly make themselves

wings and they fly away like an eagle

Jesus said Beware of covetousness for a

man’s life consisteth not in the

abundance of the things which he

possess and we look on Wall Street

sometimes they show those pictures of

those men going crazy just I don’t know

how they keep up with it all but but

people go crazy over

money and even poor people long for

money they say if only I had a few

thousand doll I’d be happy no you

wouldn’t because you’d want a few

thousand

more

and then Solomon had great power men

like power and Prestige and no nation in

the world of that day D defies Solomon

he had more power than any man of his

generation he had the greatest army had

the greatest Navy in the world of that

day and he looked upon his mighty

military power and he said it’s all a

bubble that

burst what shall it profit a man Jesus

said if he gains the whole world and

loses his soul suppose he had all the

knowledge and all the wealth and all the

power in the whole world today and lost

your

soul and many of you are doing just that

you’ve gained in your circle of world

you’ve gained all all that you can gain

but your soul you’re not sure about you

go to church you have a name on a church

role you’ve been baptized and all of

that but deep in your heart something is

missing you don’t know what it is the

thing that’s missing is that personal

relationship with

Christ but Paul talked about another

power that comes for God had not given

us the spirit of fear but of power and

of love and a sound mind and then so

Solomon turned to the aesthetic like he

said well maybe I can do some other

things that’ll bring happiness and peace

and joy to my life he said I made pools

of water I got me men singers and women

singers and the Delights of the sons of

men has musical instruments he got

orchestras and he got ballet he got

everything and whatsoever my eyes

desired he said I kept not from them I

had everything I could ever think about

or desire but he said it was all vanity

he developed a love for art and music

and culture he built beautiful gardens

had musical

recital then he said I looked upon all

the works that my hands had wrought and

on the labor that I had labored to do

and behold it was all vanity and

vexation of spirit and there’s no Spirit

under the sun no Prophet Under the

Sun you see if you had it all that

you’re striving after it wouldn’t bring

the peace and the happiness you’re

looking for why because it’s found in

Christ the scripture says behold are

greater than Solomon here now Solomon

also tried religion he vowed to build

the greatest Temple that the world had

ever seen Solomon’s Temple took seven

years to build and it was called one of

the Seven Wonders of the World his

Temple was an architectural wonder it

was made ready at a quarry so that when

it was built they didn’t use any hammers

or a a es or any tools of iron Was Heard

while it was being put together it was

so perfect he overlaid the temple with

pure gold the floor was made of gold it

took

150,000 laborers working 7 years to

build

it but religion without a personal

encounter with Christ will not save the

soul it won’t bring peace to your soul

that your soul Longs

for where is peace where is fulfillment

where is life’s purpose and

meaning finally Solomon came to this

conclusion he said let us hear the

conclusion of the whole matter fear God

keep his Commandments for this is the

whole duty of man for God shall bring

every work into judgment whether every

secret thing whether it be good or

whether it be evil in other words he

said there’s a judgment coming and to be

prepared for that judgment is the most

important important thing in the whole

world come to the

Cross that’s the only place you can find

forgiveness and Jesus said behold a

greater than Solomon is here Jesus said

ye shall know the truth and the truth

shall make you free Jesus said what we

see on that sign I am the way the truth

and the light I am the embodiment of all

truth think of a man standing in front

of the world and saying I am the

embodiment of all truth he’s either

crazy or he’s

lying or he’s what he claims to be Jesus

said I am the truth and I can set you

free free from your anxieties free from

your troubles and

problems I can give you a peace to go

through them now he doesn’t take your

troubles and problems

away as Dawn told us a few moments ago

but he gives you a peace and a

joy that’ll enable you to go through

them and live through them if you put

your your trust and your faith in him

yes Jesus was greater in wisdom it says

in whom I hid all the treasures of

wisdom and knowledge it’s in Christ in

Colossians

2 in Jesus

Christ if you know

Christ you know

more than the professor at the greatest

University because that Professor is

looking for something that you

found Christ was greater in giving

pleasure because the scripture says in

Hebrews 12 who for the joy that was set

before him you see when you receive

Christ the Holy Spirit comes to live

into your life and he produces in you

Joy It’s Supernatural

joy and there’s pleasure beyond anything

that you ever

dreamed in Jesus

Christ I remember the my mother was

dying a few years years ago up here in

Charlotte and the last words my mother

was heard to say was in a loud voice at

5:00 in the morning she hadd been under

a coma she hadn’t said a word she hadn’t

moved and she was a great woman of

God but she suddenly sat up in bed the

day she

died and shouted out Psalm

1495 let the Saints be joyful and Glory

and let them sing upon their

beds can you imagine that I think she

was already in

heaven in First Peter 1 it says whom

having not seen ye love in whom though

ye now see him not yet believing you

rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of

Glory in thy presence is fullness of joy

at thy right hand their Pleasures

forever more the Bible says Psalm 1611

do you know that do you know that kind

of Joy that’s something that’s

supernaturally produced you can’t find

it anywhere else you can’t find it in

sex experience you can’t find it in

drugs you see the whole country is on a

quest for something in drugs in Sex and

entertainment we we want something we

don’t quite know what it is and it’s

elusive we haven’t we don’t find it oh

you can go out and have a good time at a

party and prom is are going to be around

the corner you can have a great time on

your prom night if you get the right

guy

but something will be

missing all of a sudden in the midst of

a crowd in the midst of a dance in the

midst of the orchestra playing in the

midst of the band

playing your face will suddenly have a

little Cloud over it just for an instant

it’s just a moment in which it seems

that it’s not all put together the

puzzle is not put together and then you

forget it and you go on but it’s there

and it’ll grow through the

years he was also greater in riches it

says though he was rich yet for your

sakes he became poor that she through

his poverty might be

rich there’s no riches compared to the

riches in Jesus Christ come to Christ

and he gives you the real things of life

and then he was greater in power it says

all power is given unto him in heaven

and earth and the Bible says that

someday he’s going to come back

in power and great glory and His Holy

Angels with him no wonder the Apostle

Paul said I’m not ashamed of the gospel

of Christ for it is the power of God and

the Salvation to everyone that believes

do you know that power has that power

come into your heart have you received

him I’m going to ask you

tonight to make sure of your

relationship with

Christ I’m going to ask you to enter in

into

his

force and March under his Banner under

his

flag and say from this moment on I’m

following Christ like dawn said a few

moments

ago do you know him are you sure of it

I’m going to ask you to come and stand

in front of this platform and say by

coming I want to come to Christ with all

my heart I want to surrender to him I

want to make sure

you want to receive him into your heart

or you want to rededicate your life to

him you get up and come and stand here

and after you’ve all come and stood here

I’m going to say a word to you and have

a prayer with you then give you some

literature to help you in your Christian

Life you say well why do you ask people

publicly well the reason I ask people

publicly is because every person that

Jesus ever called he called publicly he

hung on the cross publicly he said if

you will not acknowledge me before men

I’ll not acknowledge you before my

Father which is in heaven the scripture

also says he that hardeneth his heart

being often reproved shall suddenly be

cut off and that without remedy you may

never again in your whole life have a

moment like this tonight what a gorgeous

evening there may never be another

moment when you’re so close to the

kingdom as you are tonight and the Bible

warns time after time now is the

accepted time today is the day of

salvation you have no promise of

tomorrow you have no promise that your

heart will be feeling the way it feels

tonight God is speaking to you you’re

making a choice tonight you’re making a

choice between Christ and all that the

world has to offer and you’re saying

Lord I’m putting you first from this

moment on I want to get in your on your

side you get up and come right now

hundreds of

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you

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was for

me

and

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the

to of God

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now to you that have been watching by

television you are seeing that here in

Columbia South Carolina in this great

football stadium at the

University there are hundreds of people

that are making their commitment to

Jesus Christ many of them young

people finding purpose in meaning in

their lives and direction in their lives

they’re choosing Christ I’m asking you

to make the same Choice wherever you are

in your hotel room in your home

wherever give your heart and your life

to Christ where you are and pick up the

telephone and call that number on the

screen there are people standing by to

talk to

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you and as hundreds are making their

commitments to Christ here at the

Williams Bryce stadium in Columbia South

Carolina you can make your decision for

Christ right now Mr Graham has already

encouraged you to make that telephone

call we hope that you will special

friends are standing by ready to talk to

you if you just prayed that prayer with

my father or if you have any questions

about a relationship with Jesus Christ I

would just call that number that is on

the screen there’ll be someone there to

talk with you pray with you and answer

those question questions and

remember God loves

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you if you would like to commit your

life to Jesus Christ please call us

right now toll-free at

877772

4559 that’s

877772

4559 or you can write to us at Billy

Graham 1 Billy Graham Parkway Department

C Charlotte North Carolina

28201 or you can contact us on the web

247 at peacei god.tv we’ll get the same

helps to you that we give to everyone

who responds at the invitation on behalf

of Franklin Graham and the Billy Graham

Evangelistic Association thank you for

watching and thank you for your

prayers there’s only one way only one

hope

he the sound of a new day witness the

and give your life to Christ and see

what

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happen with me to the Billy

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